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Restructuring Proposal

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Title: Restructuring Proposal


1
Parish Health Ministry Diocese of the
Midwest Orthodox Church in America Urban Parish
Summit July 16-17 2009 St Theodosius Cathedral
Cleveland OH Archangel Michael Church
Broadview Heights OH To explore the unique
opportunities to proclaim Christ in urban
settings The Vocation of an Orthodox Urban
Parish in the 21st Century
2
Contents
  • Why have this Summit?
  • Goals
  • Agenda
  • Issues Faced by Urban Parishes
  • Key Challenges as reported at Summit
  • What is working
  • Current ministries by attendees
  • What I learned (day one)
  • Workshop Notes Fix This Urban parish
  • Healtht vs Unhealthy Urban parish attributes
  • What is needed from Diocese /OCA
  • Attendee feedback survey summary

3
Why
  • Approximately 35 of Diocesan parishes are
    located in major urban areas as opposed to the
    suburbs or rural locations.
  • The profile of the urban parish has dramatically
    shifted over past 100 years.
  • Orthodox immigrants no longer live adjacent to
    their urban parish.
  • Majority of parishioners have embraced a suburban
    lifestyle, -- long commutes to church. Or
    transfer to suburban parishes with lush lawns and
    newer facilities.
  • Many parish neighborhoods are in decline --
    challenged by poverty and crime.
  • Backward not forward looking
  • In towns strapped by economic changes, some
    parishes consist of senior citizens who do not
    have the capabilities and perhaps the motivation
    to carry out ministries, or maintain a vibrant,
    healthy parish.
  • Large and aging parish buildings are costly to
    maintain, and drain the parish of resources that
    could be used for parish life and ministries.
  • Some neighborhoods however are enjoying rebirth.
     
  • Bringing Orthodox Urban parishes together to
    share, connect and define approaches to common
    problems is a critical step in growing Orthodoxy
    in America.

4
Goals Urban Parish Summit
  • Explore the opportunities that uniquely exist in
    urban settings for proclaiming Christ.
  •  Identify and agree upon the top challenges
    facing Orthodox Urban parishes.
  • Inventory what were doing today in our Urban
    parishes.
  • Understand what is working and not working in
    Orthodox urban parishes -- and define a clear set
    of good practices as a result.
  • Select a few key issues to develop potential
    approaches and solutions that can be used to
    tackle these challenges.
  • Identify key priorities for the Diocese of the
    Midwest for assisting urban parishes to live out
    their vocation.
  • Commit to one action
  • Each parish in attendance departs with at least
    one important believable action that they commit
    to taking in the next year.

5
Agenda
  • DAY ONE Exploring the Role of the Urban Parish
  • Introduction
  • Check in Exercise What is Working and Not
  • FOCUS On Urban Parish Ministries Reaching "The
    Least of These."  Fr. Justin Mathews,
  • Lunch Group Photo
  • Reaching Out to New Urban Professionals Sister
    Rita Mary Harwood, Cleveland Catholic Diocese
  • Debunking Myths of the Needy Fr. Deacon Ed
    Brisbine, St. Nicholas Orthodox Church, Warren,
    Ohio,
  • Loving Thy Neighbor in The Urban Parish
    Partnership With The Neighborhood Charles
    Robbins, St Gregory of Nyssa Columbus OH
  • Day One Closing Workshop
  • Application to Your Urban Parish
  • Intro Day Two Workshop
  • 615 pm Fellowship Social Hour Dinner  
  • Day Two Building Good Practices for Urban
    Parishes
  • Review Day One Key Highlights Summary
  • 845 am Fostering Change and Growth in the
    Established Parish
  • Fr. Gregory Jensen, Priest in charge, Holy
    Assumption Orthodox Church, Canton OH
  • Good Practices Workshop Fix This Urban Parish
  • Lunch
  • 115 PM Workshop Building a Maturity Model for
    Urban Parishes
  • 215 PM What Urban Parishes Need from Our Diocese
    and the OCA Workshop
  • Summation What have we accomplished? What next?

6
Some Issues Faced by Urban Parishes
  • Should we stay or go?
  • How to build a willingness to undertake ministry
    to others?
  • What new urban ministries should we be doing and
    how can we do them better?
  • What do we need to know about ministry xyz in
    order to do it better.
  • How to build hope in our future? Weve been
    declining for so long that our mentality is
    survival. How to feel good about our potential.
  • How to get out of ruts. Waking up a sleeping
    parish. Learning to change and adapt
  • How to build an identity and a new spirit in our
    parish
  • How to build a vibrant parish life that offers
    something unique
  • How to offer something more than Sunday AM --
    when we dont have enough children, our people
    live too far away, many are elderly etc.
  • How to attract new members to a church that is
    half full and those that are there are over 70
    and has long appeared to insular and isolated.
  • How do we attract people from the suburbs? Should
    we attract people from the burbs or should we
    focus locally? Target population for
    evangelization
  • We dont have enough money to take care of our
    aging expensive building much less start new
    ministries.
  • How can we get more from our lay persons in this
    parish? Leadership? Effort? Energy?

7
Which Issues are Important to Your Parish? From
Preconference Survey
8
Session 1 Key Challenges/We Need Help With
  • Finances/stewardship
  • Majority do not support the parish with first
    fruits, but rather with token giving
  • Prioritizing how much to put where.
  • In our desperate economy in Detroit, how do we
    raise the needed money that we need to initially
    offset our costs, and to plan our future?
  • Overcoming the fear of spending our parishes
    savings hoarding
  • Need a priest (parish w/o assigned priest)
  • Help with incorporation/ guidelines?
  • Strategies for/ experiences of others dealing
    with university
  • Parking
  • Aging Facility maintaining older property
  • Our facility adequate access
  • Aging Congregation
  • Lacking Full Multi-Generational Representation
  • Establishing a Mercy Group to more actively
    engage lay people in the ministry to the sick,
    shut-ins, and others in need of fellowship,
    contact, etc.
  • Making sure that existing programs get the
    attention they need.
  • Setting parameters for ourselves so that too few
    get too overextended
  • Attracting people from the neighborhood
  • Trend of new members to live farther away from
    the parish's location.
  • With so many families moving farther away from
    the city, how do we bring them all the way back
    home to us?
  • Location, many people have moved out of the area
  • Fear of attending evening services.
  • Changed ethnic neighborhood parishioners have
    moved away from the city
  • Reaching out to new residents of the area

9
Session 1 Key Challenges/We Need Help With
  • "Membership"-Transient parishioners due to the
    increasingly high cost of living in Chicago.
  • Our location in a depressed neighborhood
  • How to let people in the neighborhood know we are
    here
  • Breaking down barriers
  • Assimilating the community
  • Changing to a ministry stewardship based approach
  • With the community changing (ethnicity) how do we
    acclimate our lives and Faith with theirs?
  • How to engage people who live in a culture of
    poverty about Orthodoxy from fundamentalist
    backgrounds.
  • Engaging a mentality of poverty from a middle
    class perspective
  • How to engage "the poor" as persons and not as
    "the needy" or projects.
  • Ministries outside of our own people (we do only
    safe ministries)
  • Shifting out of low gear in our work with the
    community
  • What have people learned about dealing with the
    "professional beggar" what process of
    discernment do we use to tell who really should
    be helped?
  • Classes/catechetical approach for neighborhood
    people who are functionally illiterate.
  • Orthodox Lifestyle is a "hard sell", even among
    baptized Orthodox Christians within an
    increasingly liberal society that embraces
    relativism and political correctness.
  • Overall sense of "distraction" from "churchly
    things" caused by society's "busyness." Need to
    find strategies to counteract the loss of young
    adults after high school graduation.
  • Getting the people to come to Church
  • Sunday AM only participation
  • Breaking out of ruts
  • Being one of 30 Orthodox parishes (6 OCA) in our
    city

10
Session 1What is Working For Us
  • Outreach to (typical Orthodox) immigrants
  • Speakers from outside Orthodox resources
  • Outreach to college
  • Invite neighbors to church with flyers
  • Diversity is accepted
  • Working with schools and food bank
  • Vesperal liturgies
  • Spiritual life center used on a daily basis
    attracts neighbors
  • Referral service
  • Outreach to shelters, campus neighbors
  • Block party
  • Show we care about neighborhood
  • Teach about Tradition in homilies
  • Reaching out to university and medical center
  • Focus on resources for people in need
  • Ministry based parish council
  • Desire to have all parishioners in a ministry
  • Cambridge professor provides bible study
  • Dinners and events for socializing
  • Festival to engage neighborhood
  • Frequently updated websites and newsletters
  • Neighborhood building are historical
  • Decision to stay (in neighborhood) and renovate
    means conscious commitment
  • Ministries outside of parish
  • Engage neighbors outreach to neighborhood
  • Parishioners are not concerned with parking or
    declining neighborhood
  • Feeding 90-100 persons by collecting food from
    local stores
  • Bookstore and coffee house are open to public
  • Willingness to catechize neighborhood people who
    are illiterate
  • Stewardship Admin youth
  • Reaching out to younger Orthodox people working
    in the area
  • People deciding to attend here even though
    farther away
  • Student prayer books for campus

11
Session 1What is Working For Us
  • Finances/stewardship
  • Greater greater youth participation
  • Wider participation in outreach programs
  • more inflow of new people/conversions/baptisms
  • Formation of Parish Life Committee has helped
    develop new parish activities.
  • Constant addition of new converts, although small
    in number annually.
  • Parish Council has become more diversified, with
    excellent collegial attitude.
  • We had to "re-identify" ourselves to us, our Lost
    Sheep, our neighbors/community.
  • Realizing keeping GOD first, we began a series
    of events/activities to promote our Faith to
    develop social relationships that would help get
    us noticed and to keep folks interested.
  • We also stressed our own fellowship Christian
    Education for adults and kids.
  • Collaborating with neighborhood organizations who
    may have access to greater resources.
  • Teaching series aimed at "catechism for the
    catecized."
  • Religious Education has taken an even more
    professional stature. New teachers, new programs
    help build interest and support.
  • Our Outreach program. Under fine leadership
    service projects involve our neighbors in
    increasingly useful ways.
  • Congregational response has become more
    spirited. Visitors take note and are favorably
    impressed.
  • All the parishioners are involved in welcoming
    guest and bring friend to the services. I tell
    my parishioners in the sermons that this Church
    will only grow if we all bring people. It's a
    call which we must all answer.
  • Team work.
  • Ministries, service and fellowship opportunities
  • Parish Administration
  • Liturgical life, preaching and teaching are said
    to be more vibrant
  • More Frequent (5-6 per week)/Vibrant Worship
  • Effective Collaborative Leadership
  • The Ministry of the Spiritual Life Center

12
Listing of Current Urban Ministries by Attending
ParishesCompiled from preconference survey
  • After School Arts Program (arts in schools
    suffering cuts or elimination)
  • Annual free Block Party
  • Involvement with neighborhood issues upkeep
  • Small public playground provided in parish
    property
  • participation in city-wide interfaith
    organization addressing urban social/economic
    issues - impacts neighborhood
  • Deborah's Place- Serving meals to at a homeless
    women's shelter
  • Pacific Garden Mission- Clothing drive for the
    homeless
  • Contributions to local food bank located at
    nearby church.
  • Invitations extended to attend parish's annual
    food festival as free guests.
  • Open-house held on a Saturday recently
  • Opened church as refuge when nearby housing unit
    caught on fire.
  • Assist food needs to legitimate people with
    restaurant certificates
  • Feeding off a successful campaign to feed the
    poor at holidays, we have continued collecting
    distributing food/items to the poor.
  • We have created events that fill needs of the
    area (including Santa Claus photos and cookies,
    designing Easter Eggs, Internet cafe in our hall,
    after school programs to tutor, talking to the
    neighbors, etc)
  • Participating in neighborhood events and
    organizations

13
Listing of Current Urban Ministries by Attending
ParishesCompiled from preconference survey
  • Governor's Advisory Board for Faith-based and
    Community based Initiatives.
  • Habitat for Humanity
  • Food Voucher program
  • Nursing home visits
  • Blood drive
  • trash day
  • Partnering with food pantry
  • helping with meals for school age children
  • partnering with "Life Centers
  • Saturday Lunch Program
  • Outdoor beautification projects, including
    making graffiti disappear.
  • Growing involvement with the local commissions
  • food bank.
  • Informal networking
  • Art-A-Whirl
  • Neighborhood Nite Out
  • Parishioner Helping Parishioners Program
  • Ecuadorean Volley-Ball group
  • Church School and Youth Group service projects

14
What I Learned
  • About two thirds of the way through day one we
    asked we asked people to contribute a few post it
    notes about what theyd learned or what seemed
    important to them so far here are few
    contributions (some are admittedly unclear due
    to limited space or unclear context)
  • I learned about Focus North America a means and
    a model for us all to serve.
  • Finally we have a group within the church that
    can coordinate services for the people in need
  • It is great to see Orthodoxy stepping up to the
    plate in an organized fashion putting into action
    that which is in all of our hearts.
  • Hope inspiration to network with other Orthodox
    to set up service work/agency
  • Inspired to be more prophetic/courageous
  • Im not the only one who has noticed that there
    is a current of racism that undermines the work
    of our church
  • Im encouraged to hear that so many people are
    doing so much good mission work
  • Parish hall used for service level ministries
  • Start small be consistent
  • Ministries for the poor or with the poor or
    Are we the poor? or Am I the poor?
  • I learned that an essential element to service of
    the poor is a personal presence in their
    community and a knowledge of their personal life
    struggles
  • Existing with the poor not for the poor
  • To give and not to judge
  • Instead of handing out money give vouchers and
    gift cards to a local store
  • Cross level current resources so that you may
    expand into new ministries
  • That we (our parish) are not alone in our
    struggles large the church is and that we are all
    working to help
  • A lot of Orthodoxy is just showing up
  • Idea of a spiritual life center
  • God does not call to equip He equips the called
  • I learned people cannot get a social security
    card without an address

15
What I Learned (contd)
  • Church property could and should be used not just
    on Sunday for the betterment of those in need of
    space
  • Dont non-urban parishes need to evangelize too?
  • It is a better thing to feed the hungry than to
    raise the dead St John Chrysostom
  • Do not let space and bricks and mortar be the
    issue. Building a new church sometimes puts the
    focus on paying a mortgage and loses the focus on
    the ministry of the church
  • Stay where we are. Dont move your church. Start
    a mission.
  • Possibilities of in parish free clinics
  • Humane shelters model does not work shelter
    first model more effective
  • I was inspired by the likeminded individuals that
    were talking an present at this time.
  • Was enlightened to realize there is a great hope
    to help others address problems
  • Need to provide a home setting first, the chances
    for success increase significantly people can
    grow long term
  • Why shouldnt our diocese or our deaneries NOT
    promote and facilitate urban suburban
    partnerships? This should be an outcome of this
    conference

16
Additional Day One Photos
17
Workshop Notes
  • Day Two
  • Fix This Urban Parish
  • This section is based on specific mythical yet
    recognizable case studies

18
Fix this Urban ParishCase 1 Heritage parish in
Decline
  • What are Key Strengths of this parish?
  • Parish life is still reasonably strong
  • Lots of possibilities if you stay in the
    neighborhood
  • The building is a curiosity generator. What more
    can we ask than people to approach with honest
    curiosity.
  • A love is here. For one another for heritage,
    for building
  • The parish has great stories. (Though this can be
    a negative also.)
  • In some sense there is a past history of
    evangelistic success with preaching the gospel
  • There has been sacrifice by those who were/are
    part of the parish

19
Fix this Urban ParishCase 1 Heritage parish in
Decline
  • What assets and strengths are underutilized?
  • Look at leadership
  • You have a pool of knowledge time resources to
    tap into
  • Question to ask Why Me? Why Was I sent here?
  • What about money Can tap into endowment?
  • Endowment is not adequate can create an
    illusion of success
  • Current number of parishioners not enough to
    sustain
  • Trustee mentality can they envision a real
    change?
  • Is the congregation in love with the church or
    with the building
  • Can re-imagine this as a smaller urban parish in
    collaboration with others
  • Value newcomers explore the ways
  • Understand the history of the parish and the real
    story to unlock myths and help apply similar
    energy to todays challenges. Rwquires sensitive
    pastoral approach
  • Board/parish council time to ask/respond to new
    questions

20
Fix this Urban ParishCase 1 Heritage parish in
Decline
  • What actions can we take?
  • Unlock any assumptions about what /who we are?
  • Hire a youth director use endowment funds
  • Ask two questions
  • Do you want to grow? Yes or No?
  • If yes why? (If no why?)
  • Are we satisfied with the way we live our
    life/lives in Christ?
  • What is the vision?
  • What choices must be made?
  • Size of parish engaging volunteers from the
    community
  • Stay lean and mean (There were a couple of sub
    themes that ran through the discussion. Some
    seemed to push for a view of keeping the parish
    small 150 people with strong community
    limited spending on staff or programs.
  • What are the consequences of not acting?
  • What are you producing by your behavior in the
    community (neighborhood) Love of Christ?
  • Interfaith collaboration
  • Keeping a beautiful spiritual landmark as part of
    the community
  • Total community appreciation
  • A responsibility of more than the parish other
    churches, deanery, diocese
  • We are functional Congregationalists
  • Where is the future of our Orthodox Church from
    within? Staying lean and mean.
  • Our children need to see Orthodoxy as their faith
    not the faith of their parents
  • Possibilities of clustering with Orthodox
    parishes
  • Pursue acts of engaging the community using what
    Orthodox liturgical life does best.

21
Fix this Urban ParishCase 1 Heritage parish in
Decline
  • Who Will Come to This Parish?
  • Same kind of people who are already there
  • People who are different than are already there
  • University students
  • Faculty
  • People inquiring about Orthodoxy
  • Find out what attracted the newer parishioners
  • Locals form neighborhood
  • A robust educational program may attract people
    who are interested in exploring Orthodoxy
  • This parish, due to its heritage, distinctive
    edifice, hilltop perch and elder statesman
    status/stature can properly, yet humbly claim to
    be first among equals for the city of Rustville
    . It can be a beacon for Orthodoxy. (almost
    literally) Orthodox Rustville. A right no a
    duty to be a magnet and the center for all
    local orthodox parishes..

22
Fix this Urban ParishCase 2 Deep Decline 20
people left
  • Prayer needed ask every monastery to pray for
    this parish
  • Recolonize this parish.
  • Import 4 families, from other parishes, who want
    to be missionaries here in America. They can
    spend 6-24 months here or become permanent.
  • Make sure a couple of these people are good
    singers. Much discussion on the importance of
    strengthening liturgy particularly singing.
    Many felt this was an absolute necessity. Others
    less so.
  • Make parish into an urban monastery.
  • Address/understand the animosity that exists
    between the urban and one suburban parish.

23
Fix This Urban Parish Case 3 Stay or Go?
  • Reasons to Stay
  • Presence of church exhibits need
  • Its easier to stay
  • This group cant afford to leave and build a new
    church
  • It would be hard to sell the building/ property
    not that valuable
  • It is attractive on the inside welcoming
  • Reasons to Go
  • Go before it is too late
  • Neighborhood is hindering potential for new
    growth
  • There seems to be no desire for neighborhood
    outreach is there a reason to think this can
    change? If not why be there
  • The parish just needs a change the myriad of
    efforts associated with a move may provide a jump
    start
  • No plan of outreach

24
Fix this Urban ParishCase 2 Deep Decline 20
people left
  • After this discussion the 40 or so people present
    were asked to vote (as if they were
    parishioners) as to whether they would stay or
    go. Almost everybody voted to stay in this
    location.
  • What Would Change The Decision
  • After the vote we asked what factors might change
    the outcome of this vote. What would sway your
    decision to stay?
  • Take away one or more of the positives (reasons
    to stay)
  • If it became apparent that, despite reasonable
    efforts, the community was incapable of change.
    (essentially wrt to neighborhood outreach). We
    are who we are and thats it.
  • If it became physically dangerous for
    parishioners.
  • If it became logical to establish a new center in
    a new location. (The church is today in center of
    its membership. If a preponderance of members
    seemed to over time be located in a particular
    quadrant of the city that might make a move more
    logical or effective.)
  • This parish can work to start a mission in the
    suburbs. (But of course this raises many
    questions which we did not time to work through.)

25
Other Workshop Sessions
26
Healthy vs. Unhealthy Urban Parish Characteristics
  • Healthy
  • Liturgical services
  • Full schedule
  • Ongoing prayer
  • The gang is not all there all the time
  • Educational and promoting understanding
  • Vision of excellence and improvement
  • Scheduling of services
  • Sensitivity to traffic etc. --Appropriate times
  • Well prepared and implemented services
  • Community participation
  • Mission to non English speaking
  • Qualities of active service
  • Need based not self serving
  • Laity involved
  • Gospel based
  • Appreciation of Talents/gifts
  • Appreciation of diversity
  • Full spectrum of ages
  • Not So Healthy
  • Attitude of we are here for our people
  • Hostility toward neighbors
  • Fence, barbed wire
  • Cheap stingy
  • Hoarding
  • Bingo
  • Poorly repaired
  • Building rich only
  • Lack of vision
  • Status quo vision
  • In fighting

27
Summary of Discussion about Theme Vocation of an
urban Parish in the 21st Century
  • Urban vs. Suburban
  • Intentional choice
  • Ownership
  • Material need (and opportunity) in urban setting
    is greater
  • Problems in both
  • Urban parish can set good example

28
What is Needed from the Diocese/OCA to Assist
Urban Parishes
  • Basics scripture liturgics
  • Language translations
  • Cluster coalitions across deaneries urban
    suburban parishes
  • Cross jurisdictional collaboration
  • Interfaith collaboration
  • Continue the process started in this summit
  • Shared best practices successful stuff
  • Policy on when to close a parish
  • What to do before you make a decision
  • Clarification of legal issues regarding
    closing/ownership
  • A proactive approach what to do when
  • Use of the parish health model

29
How Could this Summit Have Been Improved?
  • Materials ahead of time
  • Names of participants with contact info
  • More open space time for discussion and dialogue
  • Fewer presentations

30
Selected Feedback Survey Results
  • Only 13 attendees filled out the post summit
    survey so you can be your own judge as to
    whether these results are an actual reflection
    or not!

31
Attendees Benefits
  • Comments
  • Aside from St Gregory's, we're probably the
    farthest advanced in this, and we didn't need to
    be convinced of anything. But our group still
    found the conference very encouraging and useful.
  • Good networking was possible. Further
    opportunities would be great

32
Facilities Comments
  • No problems.....close to hotel
  • inspiring to see the cathedral and St. Michael
    Church
  • Food was fine....try to keep it healthy!!
  • Would preferred to have stayed at the Cathedral
    location. It was a great 'on-site' location to
    work in. Well fed. Maybe some more yogurt or
    little less of the sweets .
  • I thought the venues were excellent. Food was
    great. enjoyed the fellowship.
  • Fine - good hospitality.
  • All were at least adequate.
  • Well done!
  • My delegate did observe that it was much easier
    to hear people at the Broadview Heights facility,
    than in the echo at St. Theodosius... although
    seeing St. Theodosius was a treat in itself, and
    gave us an urban context.
  • The meeting facility was adequate and appropriate
    for the meeting.
  • I thought both facilities were fine. If you are
    going to be talking about urban issues, I think
    it helps to be in an urban environment. The stark
    differences between the two sites, really pointed
    out how they exist on almost two different
    planets.
  • Great job by all. My first experience in
    participating in such a church event -- very eye
    opening and most enjoyable.

33
If You Could Change Just One Thing
  • Provide an evening gathering so everyone could
    mingle and get to know each other
  • A panel discussion might be something to
    consider.
  • Linking like parishes would have been better for
    small groups at least that's my thinking.
    Perhaps begin with a parish sketch. Location.
    Major problems. Opportunities, etc. Would help to
    get a feel for the place.
  • More time the first day for discussion. fewer
    presenters and more group discussion.
  • A better mix/coordination of presentation and
    discussion, with a little tighter control.
  • I felt high jacked at times. (essentially by
    attendees (priests) on soapboxes)
  • Keep comments to 2 or 3 minutes.. Some
    improvement in speakers. People should keep to
    the assignment.
  • Keep to the schedule. Shorten the talks.
  • Okay, sue me.. but I would have liked a sermon
    from some theologically minded person, about the
    biblical/gospel basis for this kind of ministry.
    I missed the pep talk, in other words, from an
    orthodox theological point of view.
  • Have talks dealing not just with outreach, but
    also community dialogue techniques, as well as
    motivations within the parish.
  • Talks on partnering and its value would be good.
  • More discussion and networking sessions. I heard
    some really powerful stuff.
  • You might have a specific focus next time, so
    that you can have specific actionable things that
    can be done. I think it was not clear what we
    were to take back and work on.A
  • Maybe for one exercise or brainstorming session,
    break-up the groups so you have networking an
    sharing of ideas in small groups.

34
Worth Your Time?
  • Comments
  • It recharged our batteries and let us know that
    we are not alone in this problem.
  • Related to previous experiences as a priest, but
    not present parish situation.
  • More than - as per evaluation.
  • Would do it again. Honesty is essential and I
    thought people felt comfortable enough to let
    their guard down.

35
What do you now see as the most important
challenge(s) facing Orthodox Urban parishes in
the next ten years? 
  • Throwing good money after bad...... Upsetting the
    older parishoners who have said,"Keep these doors
    open until I am buried "
  • What could happen if there is a massive return to
    the city in the next 10 years....?
  • Staying alive for all that means.
  • Staying focused on American issues avoiding
    anything diaspora.
  • Connecting center and suburb. This one is needed
    by all kinds of groupings and perhaps especially
    religious groups.
  • Coping with and accommodating changing
    ethnic/linguistic demographics.
  • Aging issues with congregations that are now
    mostly middle age.
  • Planting new parishes and generously reaching out
    to new populations from old parishes.
  • Putting good will and ideas into action. If the
    economy tanks too much, urban situations will
    become more difficult.
  • Most urban parishes have expensive and growing
    maintenance costs - a very serious drain on
    financial resources. If they are to be a platform
    for ministries, ways have to be found for these
    expensive assets to be at least as much revenue
    neutral as possible
  • Most urban parishes have expensive and growing
    maintenance costs - a very serious drain on
    financial resources. If they are to be a platform
    for ministries, ways have to be found for these
    expensive assets to be at least as much revenue
    neutral as possible
  • Embracing a new identity for the orthodox parish
  • Hate to use this -- but are we doing a good
    enough job marketing?

36
What do you now see as the most important
challenge(s) facing Orthodox Urban parishes in
the next ten years? 
  • Embracing the new opportunities in the evolving
    environment they find themselves. The only
    alternative to embracing the new opportunities
    are to slowly fade out of existence. This would
    be unfortunate for those parishes and for the
    salvation and well-being of the neighborhoods
    surrounding the parish.
  • First, bringing more neighbors into our parishes.
    Save more souls.
  • Become integrated parts of the fabric of the
    communities they live in and serve. The change
    from ethnic homes is happening, but the
    transition to the next thing is the dangerous and
    exciting place we find ourselves.
  • Maintaining our youth in our faith -- marriages
    to other faiths are taking many of our young
    adults away from our faith.
  • Financial stability of small parishes who cannot
    group their efforts with other Orthodox churches
    due to distance.
  • Major repair work that will need to be done to
    keep the temples open and accessible (ADA)
    assistive listening systems, HVAC over hauls,
    security and safety concerns of our buildings and
    property....
  • Tracking the movement of our graying members -
    ie, more and more people are moving to other
    parts of the country for cost or weather or both
    - are we tracking this and developing strategic
    action plans to locate churchs or facilities for
    Orthodox? Not everyone moves to an area where
    there is an church or they need to travel great
    distances to the church, as you get older, you
    are less likely to travel that distance.

37
Did Your Opinion Change?
  • Learned things, but believe we are on a genuine
    outreach track.
  • Desire to bring our programs into better
    coordination and have a more holistic approach to
    neighborhood outreach.
  • I think it was a necessary and outstanding start!
  • Enjoyed listening to what other churches are
    doing.
  • I think folks at the summit know this. In fact it
    was really encouraging
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